The Valley Virginian. [volume] (Staunton, Va.) 1865-1895, 1887-04-14
Farmers and the Tariff.

VIII Uutl unDei al the OtDef people OF our
| country, and are engaged in the one call
ing which underlies all others, aud. the
most important of ALL cannot combine
even to advance their common interests.
and correct aagrant abuses
| Appeals are made and organizations eff
fected, with this object in view. time and
| again. What has been done by our Far
mers Assemblies and Councils Some
thing, it is true: for we have at last bill
passed making our Commissioner of Ag.
riculture a Cabinet officer, but that could
have been done8b petitioning Congress to
do it. United on common ground, they
could demand and receive any legislation
desired. Attelnpts Lave been made re-
peatedly to secure unity of action, and
what has been Fhe result ? Controverted
political questions are dragged in, as they
have been at th. last two meetings of the
Farmers Council. to create disaffection
and division at puee.
AT the meeting in 1885. the subject of
The tariff was tabled after able debate. and
yet it was later on taken up by a majority
! vote, and finally tabled again.
| Now, no ore will question the impor-
lance OF this subject to the farmer yet
| because it is question of party politics,
upon which farmers are now and always
Willie divided it should be one of those
things they should agree todisagree about
while moving to secure good, that they
can all agree ulion the common interest of
all.
To Illustrate this: The Young Mems
Christian Association is a power in the
land to-day, which is being felt from
Maine to California. 1t could not exist
were not sectalian questions party en-
tirely ignored il the work of the organi
zation. SnreIIssgery few Of the members
of that greed fganiNation but are attached
30 some Of t4seaurchcs with MILDLY vary
ing tenets, nor sill they willingly admit
thatthey are not important. They agree
to act together upon common ground
and are able to exert an influence for good
! that is felt all over The wnrld. There are
lquestions upon which the ablest and most
gifted of men cannot agree. The tariff is
| one of these. There are other issues upon
which it is presumed all farmers will agree.
One of these is, that farmers ought to have
larger representation in all our legisla-
tive halls.
1t matters not whether the large major
ity of the farmers of the country are in
favor Of protective tariff or not. There
certainly is a vast body of them who do,
and another vast body who do not and
they are attached to political parties which
formulate their opinions, OF profess to do
so, in their party platforms,
The honesty and sincerity of the opinions
held cannot bequestioned. Norwill intel
ligent men deny that it is a question Of
great Importance, affecting, as it does, the
industries. and through them the general
welfare Of the country.
Well might the veteran of our State de.
clare, as he did at the meeting in 1885, that
he, after his long and varied experience.
did not know what was best as to the
tariff 1t is question that can best be
debated in the public press Or upon the
rost r,,ro ,uboro tho GAVIN oud;anoo o.,, No
had n road Or f. boar hoth sides Of this
oor,r,ov onos,;on Toa.v tbo nbo,o -
a.otr;o1 ,,,or,a ;, stoao,s;ro -. ~ -
fects of the ill-starred legislation against
$50 Ahrahano ~ 40 hive 80 CT, na;a
shoobols of e;1,or {. la,rf,, roonau oe tIo
,,arohan+. !, soor;d mr;t aeirn,s sor 80
;old Macn,,ab
The tic wo suffer in tho dostr,et;on 81
no1nos .,o folt hn ovorv f,rmor p,t Lom
r,anv IF thon in odontinr thot nlotforn,
of the Council, knew that last year there
were more than 8. 500. 900 mounds of ram cot
ton, landed and sold in American ports oro.
duced bv the ,rorse than. paa.oer labor of In
dia? We saw worse than po,4per, for the
ryot is the Pariah. to touch whom is held
to he contamination by those of the castles
above him in that country. The tariff did
not keep out Gotten. because there is no
tariff on it. Whoever thonobt cotton could
be landed in ourmarket ItcouId not have
been but for cheap silver.
British policy is to degrade silver, that she
can, through that pOpulous dependency of
India, undersell as in the great staples of
wheat anu cotton. Why not
The rupee (silver is the only money Of
lndia) has the same purchasing powerthere
that 1t had where silver bullion sold for its
coin value in Europe, while now the DIFF
ference between that and London exchange
tsterling money is fully 80 per cent And
this great Republic is playing into the hands
of the men who are doing their best to